This invention relates to a fishing aid.
It is generally recognised that the best form of bait for certain species of predator or game fish is live bait. However, it is not always easy to acquire live bait so as less preferred options, some fishermen use dead or artificial bait.
However, these options do suffer drawbacks in that dead fish do not swim like live bait which swim with their dorsal fin vertical, and artificial bait does not have a natural smell.
In an attempt to overcome these disadvantages, various "bait swimmers" have been designed which impart a more realistic "swimming" action to the dead fish. Cut strips of dead fish, commonly known as "strip bait", have been used to intensify the smell and taste of the bait.
However, these methods do not protect the bait fish or strip as it is being trolled through the water with the result that at reasonable trolling speeds the bait breaks up within a short time. This problem is even greater when fishing hooks are attached in place next to or through the bait as this often weakens the bait to a point where it offers little resistance to the tearing effect of the water when the bait is being trolled at high speeds.
Further, dead or strip bait obviously does not undergo a slight colour change which occurs in certain species of fish when attacked. Certain species of fish have a lateral line running along the length of the body which apparently changes colour or "lights up" whenever the fish is alarmed. The predator fish apparently recognises this "lighting up" as fear which it is believed incites the predator fish to strike.
The invention seeks to provide protection to the dead or strip bait as it is being trolled, as well as to improve the smell and overall appearance of the bait.